A highway linking Jianshi county in the Enshi Tujia and Miao autonomous prefecture and Enshi in Central China's Hubei province opened to traffic on July 16.
One of China's national traffic poverty-alleviation projects, the highway was constructed by several central state-owned enterprises including China Railway Construction Corporation Limited (CRCC).
Starting from Jianshi county, the highway passes Baiyangping, Longfengba, Huchakou and Songshuping towns and ends at the pivot of Luozhentian where the Yinchuan-Beihai and Enshi-Laifeng highways join.
The total length of the highway is 75.03 kilometers, with 71.6 kilometers of main road and 3.43 kilometers of sub-line.
Built with double-direction four-lanes, the 24.5-meter wide road has a designed speed of 80 kilometers per hour.
New technologies and materials were used during construction which greatly improved working efficiency and security.
For example, a hydraulic climbing form system was used in construction of the No. 3 and 4 piers, which sped up the lifting process of frames and improved safety.
The automated spraying maintenance system specially developed for high piers effectively solved the maintenance of high pier concrete and at the same time lowered engineering costs.
The project is a main infrastructure to integrate coordinated development of regions and promote construction of the West Hubei eco-culture tourism circle and the economic and social development pilot zone of ethnic minority groups in the Wuling Mountains.
Upon service, travel time between Jianshi and Enshi will shorten to 50 minutes, which will help improve transportation between Hubei, Hunan and Shaanxi provinces and Chongqing municipality, strengthen connections between central and western regions in China, contribute to implementation of strategies such as the rise of the central and the western development drive as well as accelerate social and economic development of affected areas.
The highway is a part of Yinchuan-Baise highway, which connects Northwest China’s Gansu and Southwest China's Yunnan provinces.
The Baiyangping intersection of the Jianshi-Enshi highway is contracted by China Railway 19 Bureau Group Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of CRCC. [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
The Xujiaya intersection of the Jianshi-Enshi highway is contracted by China Railway 19 Bureau Group Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of CRCC. [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
(Executive editor: Wang Ruoting)
